The importance of manager happiness
We spend 90,000 hours at work over our lifetime – that’s just under 10 years. Initiatives have been established in the workplace to make these 90,000 hours as enjoyable as possible for employees in the hope that these efforts will translate into increased productivity and profit for the company. While employee wellbeing is often at the crux of these wellbeing programs, the happiness levels of another tier of workers also needs to be considered.
Manager happiness managers is vital to the workplace, yet often they aren’t afforded the same level of scrutiny as that of their subordinates. Considering that a happy boss can have an undeniably positive effect upon the workplace, it is surprising that the wellbeing of managers isn’t given more thought.
Management, especially at the small business and lower executive levels, can be super stressful – juggling the expectations of staff, clients and stakeholders can become a demanding job. Even though this pressure is seen as the by-product of having a highly paid role, a stressed-out manager can have a ripple effect throughout the workplace.
Research has been conducted to establish a link between manager wellbeing and its effect on workplace satisfaction and performance. A combined project between the Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre and The Conversation Australia found that job-specific stressors do impact a manager’s happiness level, which in turn influences their productivity on the job. With this focus on managers’ wellbeing, let’s explore why a happy boss is key to creating a pleasant working environment for all employees.
Happy boss = happy workplace
Happiness can be contagious, and this is definitely true when it comes to the workplace. Creating a welcoming environment that makes people want to come to work is a goal for many managers and achieving this often starts at the top. Acknowledging your own wellbeing and working towards managing your stress levels for increased happiness is a great place to start. For example, you could start delegating tasks to decrease your workload or engage with mental health services if you feel that your stress levels are becoming unhealthy. Showing your team that you’re willing to practice self-care will not only encourage them to work on their happiness, but also create a culture of open communication around wellbeing – valuing workplace happiness is often listed as one of the traits of a caring manager. Research by Virgin Pulse has shown that being a caring manager goes hand-in-hand with greater employee engagement, which in turn boosts profitability and lowers employee turnover. Managerial unhappiness has a flow-on effect throughout the workplace so if you’re not happy, there’s a good chance that it will start to rub off on your team. Paying attention to your wellbeing and taking steps towards being a happy manager are good ways to start creating an enjoyable workplace for your employees.
Happy workplace = more productivity
Promoting manager happiness does more than just creating happier workplaces – it can also increase productivity among your team. Creating a positive workplace culture can make coming to work a more attractive prospect for your team, while also boosting their level of productivity as they’re working – being happy at work makes employees more likely to work hard. Employee productivity is an asset to any company, so it’s a good idea to identify how you can help to motivate your team before taking the necessary steps to implement these factors in the workplace.